Darkest Night, actually. Early tomorrow morning the Moon will pass through the shadow of the Earth, totally eclipsing the moon, same as it does at least twice a year like clockwork. Except this year it will happen on the Winter Solstice, for the first time since 1638. The last time that it happened before that, well, they quit looking at Year One, so it was a really, really long time ago.
Lunar eclipses are very kewl, but slow. They’re not like solar eclipses which last a few minutes at most, as the shadow of the Earth is quite large, and it takes the Moon a while to move through it. But it's generally worth the time to see it.
Start by locating the Moon. If you're in the Midwest tonight, you're not gonna find it, since there will probably be too many clouds. But the mid Atlantic seaboard and down in Texas should be prime viewing sites.
The earth's shadow should start showing on the moon's lower left around 1:33 AM Eastern time.
The shadow will move slowly across the surface of the Moon, but by 2:41 AM, the entire moon will be covered, and will stay that way for a full hour.
The shadow will start moving again at 3:53 AM, and the moon will be back to normal by 5:00 AM. At this point it's appropriate to do your winter solstice folk dances and poetry recitals.
OK, you're probably asking yourself, "What, exactly, is the point of watching a lunar eclipse? Why can't I just close my eyes and see the same thing? Close eyes, Moon dark, big hairy deal."
Well, what happens is, when the sun is slamming onto the other side of the Earth, when seen from the Moon there will be a halo around the circumference of the Earth, where all of the sunrises and sunsets, all at once, being displayed at the circular horizon of the Earth. If you were an astronaut on the Moon, the situation would be obvious. You would see the Sun covered up by a dark Earth that was ringed all around with a thin, brilliant band of sunset- and sunrise-colored light. Our atmosphere scatters and refracts the sunlight that grazes the rim of our globe, sending it into Earth's shadow.
All of these sunrises and sunsets at the horizon will pass through the Earth's atmosphere and will cast an eerie, blood-red shadow on the Moon.
It's really quite stunning, and worth staying up (or getting up early) to see. Also, as the Moon does not pass directly through the center of the Earth's umbral shadow, the top and bottom halves of the Moon may be dramatically different in appearance and color. There's no way to predict this, so you'll just have to go out and see for yourself, if it's not cloudy.
"This matches the view in my 15 × 50 Canon IS binoculars very nicely,"
writes Rick Fienberg. He shot this picture during the February 2008 lunar
eclipse just as totality was beginning, using a Tele-Vue 85-mm refractor
as the lens on a Canon 20Da camera; 1-second exposure at ISO 400.
S&T: Richard T. Fienberg
So, it starts at 1:33 AM EST, will be completely covered for an hour beginning at 2:40 AM EST, and will be over and done with by 5:00 AM EST. You're expediters, tough it out.
eclipse - someone who cuts hair
Lunar eclipses are very kewl, but slow. They’re not like solar eclipses which last a few minutes at most, as the shadow of the Earth is quite large, and it takes the Moon a while to move through it. But it's generally worth the time to see it.
Start by locating the Moon. If you're in the Midwest tonight, you're not gonna find it, since there will probably be too many clouds. But the mid Atlantic seaboard and down in Texas should be prime viewing sites.
The earth's shadow should start showing on the moon's lower left around 1:33 AM Eastern time.
The shadow will move slowly across the surface of the Moon, but by 2:41 AM, the entire moon will be covered, and will stay that way for a full hour.
The shadow will start moving again at 3:53 AM, and the moon will be back to normal by 5:00 AM. At this point it's appropriate to do your winter solstice folk dances and poetry recitals.
OK, you're probably asking yourself, "What, exactly, is the point of watching a lunar eclipse? Why can't I just close my eyes and see the same thing? Close eyes, Moon dark, big hairy deal."
Well, what happens is, when the sun is slamming onto the other side of the Earth, when seen from the Moon there will be a halo around the circumference of the Earth, where all of the sunrises and sunsets, all at once, being displayed at the circular horizon of the Earth. If you were an astronaut on the Moon, the situation would be obvious. You would see the Sun covered up by a dark Earth that was ringed all around with a thin, brilliant band of sunset- and sunrise-colored light. Our atmosphere scatters and refracts the sunlight that grazes the rim of our globe, sending it into Earth's shadow.
All of these sunrises and sunsets at the horizon will pass through the Earth's atmosphere and will cast an eerie, blood-red shadow on the Moon.
It's really quite stunning, and worth staying up (or getting up early) to see. Also, as the Moon does not pass directly through the center of the Earth's umbral shadow, the top and bottom halves of the Moon may be dramatically different in appearance and color. There's no way to predict this, so you'll just have to go out and see for yourself, if it's not cloudy.
"This matches the view in my 15 × 50 Canon IS binoculars very nicely,"
writes Rick Fienberg. He shot this picture during the February 2008 lunar
eclipse just as totality was beginning, using a Tele-Vue 85-mm refractor
as the lens on a Canon 20Da camera; 1-second exposure at ISO 400.
S&T: Richard T. Fienberg
So, it starts at 1:33 AM EST, will be completely covered for an hour beginning at 2:40 AM EST, and will be over and done with by 5:00 AM EST. You're expediters, tough it out.
eclipse - someone who cuts hair
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